Disclaimer: The characters you recognize as J.E. are hers. Any other character is a figment of my imagination and any similarities to real persons is merely a coincidence

This story is definitely AU. The characters have the same physical appearance as in J.E.'s books; however I have changed ages of some characters. This is a Babe HEA and Cupcake fans may not be happy as Joe is dead as are Frank and Helen Plum. The Plums as well as Joe are not portrayed favorably, they were bad characters in the original and references may be made in this story as to what their actions were in the original story. References may be made to any of the books in the series, so if you haven't read them all, you may want to wait to read this. That said…

Thanks Vanessa Loor for translating my English to Spanish. Any mistakes are mine.

Four years after A Year in the Life of Rafael Manoso

Chapter 1: Rafael Gets a Sister

Rafael's POV:

I woke when my alarm went off and I knew today was going to be a special day. Today was the day Katriona was going to come to live with us. Not that she didn't already live here, it's just she would come out of Momma's tummy today. I knew we were going to bypass the gym today. Momma was already feeling off and she wouldn't want to go exercise. I slipped out of bed and searched through my closet for the right outfit. I wanted to make a good impression on Katie when she came into the world. I already felt like I knew her so well. We had communicated quite a bit over the past few months. I gave her a heads up on as much as I could. I was glad Dad was going to be working from Rangeman today and not planning to go out. Momma was going to need him. I had a bad feeling something was going to go wrong.

I hurried and got dressed for the day and made my way to the kitchen. Grandma Ella was there and I smiled as I saw her putting the dishes on the table for breakfast. I hurried forward and hugged her. Ella turned and smiled at me, "Ah Rafael, Como esta mi nietesito?" (How is my little grandson?)

I grinned and replied, "Estoy emocionado porque mi hermana llega a nosotros hoy." (I'm excited because my sister comes to us today.)

Ella's eyes brightened with joy as she said, "Oh Rafael! Que buenas noticias! Estoy ansiosa por la llegada de nuestra chiquita!" (Oh Rafael! Such wonderful news. I am so looking forward to our little one's arrival.)

I replied, "Katriona esta ansiosa por conocer a todo el mundo tambien! Esta tan emocionada por nacer!" (Katriona is looking forward to meeting everyone too! She is so excited to be born.)

Ella helped me to fix my plate and I took my place at the table. Ella kissed my forehead and told me she would see me later when she brought lunch. I kissed her cheek gently and let a feeling of love surround her. Ella left shortly after and I dug into breakfast. I was just finishing up when Momma came into the kitchen rubbing her tummy where Katie was resting for now. I knew she was in pain and today was going to be a long day for her. I slipped in and shored her up as best as I could. I was hoping to get in and out before Momma caught on but I should have known you can't pull anything over on Momma.

Momma turned and beamed at me. She bent and kissed my cheek before saying, "Thank you Rafael. But I got this. It's all part of the process."

I frowned, "I don't like when you hurt." I also sensed something else but I didn't quite understand it yet.

She caressed the top of my head, "It won't hurt for long and it helps me to know when your sister is ready to come."

I placed a hand on Momma's tummy where Katie was resting for now. "It's going to be a long day Momma. Katie won't arrive till close to midnight."

I looked up at Momma to see her roll her eyes and sigh. "Thanks for that bit of encouragement Rafael."

I tilted my head and gave Momma a puzzled look. Something about her tone made her statement seem off. For some reason I didn't think the idea of Katie not arriving till close to midnight was encouraging to her. I decided to think about it more later and I slipped out of my chair and went over to pull Momma's chair back for her. She sent me a smile and sat down. I fixed her a plate and set it before her. She picked at the food, not really eating much. I got a picture of Katie getting upset because she was starving and Momma wasn't eating. I let my gaze wander over everything on the table and smiled as I saw what Katie was wanting. I also knew that would tempt Momma more than anything else. I grabbed the Boston Cream and set it on Momma's plate.

I had to laugh at Momma's reaction when she got her first whiff of the Boston Cream. She picked it up and took a huge bite. Momma moaned and I got a picture of Katie moaning in pleasure as well. I couldn't help laughing. Momma looked at me with a puzzled look. I shrugged, "Katie is happy with your choice."

Momma laughed and took another huge bite. Once she had swallowed she grinned at me and said, "Then I'll make sure I eat the whole thing for her."

True to her word, Momma ate the whole donut. Once we were both done, I cleared the table and put the leftovers in the fridge. Momma and I went into the living room and sat down on the sofa. I made sure Momma was comfortable and then I got the TV remote for her. I got situated beside her and we spent the day snuggled together. Ella came at lunch time and Momma was sleeping so we were very quiet so as not to wake her. I ate my chicken tacos and Ella left a special dish for Momma for when she woke up.

I headed back to the sofa and snuggled back against Momma. I closed my eyes and surrounded us with love. When I woke it was late afternoon. I stilled and took stock of my surroundings. Momma was still sleeping and I frowned. I was sure she would have woken by now. I bit my lip and slipped inside, needing to know Momma was okay. I reached Katie first and she was doing okay. She winked at me and I heard her in my head telling me she was ready to see me soon. I searched until I came to Momma and then I knew what was the problem. This was serious. I was going to need reinforcements in the worst way. I concentrated and sent out the SOS.

I stayed with Momma because at the moment she needed me more than anything else. I heard the door opening seconds later and in seconds Dad was beside us. I put my hand in his and let him see what I knew. He wasted no time. He lifted Momma into his arms and I felt myself being lifted into the strong hands of Uncle Lester. Uncle Bobby was there as well. Dad headed for the door with the rest of us right behind him. We made it to the garage when I suddenly felt him. There was the smell of Christmas in the air.

Diesel opened the door for Dad and helped him to get Momma situated in the back. Dad climbed in beside her and Uncle Lester set me in back with them before getting into the driver's seat with Uncle Bobby in the front passenger seat. Diesel got in the back with us. In no time we were at the hospital and Momma was rushed to the ICU. I knew what the problem was and I tried to let everyone else know too. Dad said something to Uncle Bobby and he was talking to the doctor who just entered the room. Suddenly the door opened and I sensed Mathew was there. The nurse entered and told us we would all have to leave so the doctor could work. Uncle Diesel made her happy and she left without another word. A couple minutes later Tank entered the room with Lillie. I heard Dad ask him what was wrong and Tank shook his head and told Dad that Lillie insisted on coming.

I looked around and then I moved onto the bed beside Momma. Mathew and Lillie insisted on joining me. Once we were all in place, we took hands. Mathew and I on either side of Lillie because she was the weak link. Diesel came up behind us and placed a hand on my right shoulder and Mathew's left shoulder. We concentrated and sent our energy to Momma. I saw the problem and placed my hand on her head. I felt Katie's energy join ours and we fixed the problem. It didn't take long but it took an enormous amount of energy from all of us. I knew Katie would need more energy to make her appearance so before we slipped out I sent her a jolt of energy so she would have enough in reserves to be born tonight.

When we slipped out, I was exhausted. I saw Lillie and Mathew were fighting sleep as well. Diesel was drained but still had enough energy to make sure Momma was okay from here. I met his gaze and in my mind I heard him tell me he wouldn't let anything happen to Momma. I frowned and bit my lip. I narrowed my eyes and my gaze locked on his as I sent the thought, 'I think they created the condition.'

Diesel was beyond pissed. If it were true, they better watch out now. I lie down beside Momma and let myself sleep. I knew Diesel would keep watch till I had recharged my batteries. When I woke it was darker. Lillie and Mathew were gone. I looked around and saw Dad sitting beside Momma holding her hand and Diesel sitting behind me holding Momma's other hand. Diesel noticed my eyes were open. He smiled, 'Your Mom is going to be fine. I sent Lillie and Mathew home.'

I nodded. 'Why?'

Diesel's eyes narrowed, 'They mistakenly thought they could get control of you if your Mom wasn't around. There were two members who did this without the knowledge of the others. They are being held for now, and once this is over we'll address their actions.'

My rage was such that I was having trouble controlling it. I wanted to strike the two that had done this to my Momma. They didn't deserve their powers. I wanted them stripped and defenseless. I felt Diesel's hand on my shoulder and I got my rage under control. I placed my hand on Momma and she opened her eyes to look at me. She smiled and I returned the smile. I lay down beside her and turned so she wouldn't see the monster I could feel inside me. I sent out the thought, 'Never again will you hurt my Momma.'

I felt her hand on my head, "It's alright Rafael. I'm okay now."

I lifted my head and met her gaze, "You won't have to worry about them again Momma."

Just then there was a contraction and I smiled, "Katie's coming."

Momma nodded, "Katie is indeed coming."

For the next several hours Momma battled the contractions. In between times she rested as best she could. It was after 11:30 when the contractions were nearly continuous. When the doctor finally told Momma to push, I knew it would be soon. Finally, Momma gave one final push and the sound of a baby crying could be heard. I sat up and watched as Katie was wrapped in a blanket and laid on Momma's chest. I wrinkled my nose as I looked in on her. She was a mess. But I knew by the look in Momma's eyes that she was a beautiful sight to her. Dad wrapped his arms around Momma and whispered, "Proud of you Babe."

A nurse came over and took Katie to wash her up. Once she had been all cleaned up, she was returned to Momma. Katie let out a yell and Momma's gown slipped down to expose her breast. I laughed because I remembered doing that trick myself. I looked at my baby sister and smiled. There was a warm feeling of love surrounding all of us. When the door opened, I glanced up to see Bobby slip inside the room. He walked over and peeked down at Katie. Dad looked up at him and said, "Katriona Michelle Manoso has joined our family. You want to tell the others? She was born at 11:53 p.m. and she weighed in at 6 pounds 1 ounce and she's 20" long. She's perfect, just like her Mom."

Bobby grinned, "Congratulations Bomber." He leaned over and looked in on Katie. "Welcome aboard little girl. You're just as beautiful as your Momma."

Once Bobby had left the room, Diesel came over and placed a hand on Momma's head and his other hand on Katie's tiny head. "Long life to both of you. I promise you Stephanie, I will take care of things so this never happens again."

Momma looked at Diesel, "Be safe and come back to us."

Diesel grinned, "Always. You're my family."

There was a popping sound and Diesel was gone. I turned to where Momma lay holding Katie and asked, "So, what are we going to do next for excitement?"

Momma and Dad started laughing and I joined in.